As tension grows between the Trump administration and local communities that choose to reject his anti-immigration agenda, it will become increasingly important for states like Illinois to pass laws that reflect local values and protect basic American principles, Senator Daniel Biss said Wednesday.
“People in Illinois should not live in fear of going to school or talking to the local police,” said Biss, a Democrat from Evanston, which has been a sanctuary city where all people are welcome since 2008. “We should not allow children, parents, the elderly and the infirmed to retreat into the shadows because they are terrified that they could be detained and deported by immigration authorities anytime they or their loved ones step out of their homes to go to school or to a clinic.”
Biss is a co-sponsor of Senate Bill 31, which creates the Illinois Trust Act to blunt the impact of federal overreach on immigration matters. The legislation would:
- clarify that state and local police are not deputized immigration agents and therefore are not expected to expend resources enforcing or complying with federal civil immigration detainers and administrative warrants;
- prohibit state and local police from searching, arresting or detaining a person based solely on citizenship or immigration status or an administrative warrant;
- prohibit law enforcement agencies from using state resources to create discriminatory federal registries based on race, national origin, religion or other protected classes; and
- establish safe zones at schools, medical facilities, courts and properties operated by the Illinois secretary of state, where federal immigration enforcement would not be admitted without a valid criminal warrant.
The measure also would establish deadlines for police to complete certification forms that are requested by immigrant victims of violent crimes who cooperate with police. The certifications are among the requirements for immigrant crime victims to apply for certain visas.
The act would not bar state and local police from conducting valid criminal investigations or serving criminal warrants, nor would it bar them from working with federal immigration agents to serve valid warrants.
The Illinois Trust Act passed out of the Senate Executive Committee on April 5 and is expected to be voted on by the full Senate.
“What this legislation says is that Illinois is not OK with the federal government deputizing local police departments to do work they have neither the resources nor the training to do,” Biss said. “It also says Illinois does not condone any effort to catalog human beings based on their race, religion or nation of origin.
“Every day, state and local police throughout Illinois try to foster trust – not fear and suspicion – with immigrants in their communities so that they can protect people, solve crimes and keep the lines of communication open,” he added. “Trump’s deportation rhetoric accomplishes exactly the opposite. That’s not good for America or for Illinois.”